This service provides a convenient way of fullfilling one of the pillars of Islam. Over the past years we have noticed that more and more members are using our service. Because of the importance of zakat, this service is open to all Muslims regardless of whether they are Melayu UK members or not.

We organise Perhimpunan Keluarga to enable members and their family to get together for a few days for socialising. Perhimpunan Keluarga is also packed with various activities such as archery, orienteering, tog-o-war, pioneering and BBQ. Children who have been to Perhimpunan Keluarga still have vivid memories of the enjoyment that they experienced during their childhood years.

Our members are scattered across the UK and many live is areas where there are few Muslims and getting the opportunities to learn about Islam is limited.
Those who would like to learn how to read the Quran can now subscribe to a self-pace online learning at http://tajwid.pisang.uk

Counselling services can be obtained from PISANG (Professional Islamic Support and Nurture Group), a Malay-driven not-for-profit organisation. Please visit their website www.pisang.uk for more information.

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Three decades ago Islamic banking does not exist and banking without interest was confined to theoretical ideas on paper. The world, including the majority of Muslims, was sceptical that Islamic banking was feasible. The proponents of Islamic banking then had a tough time answering criticisms from the opponents. Now Islamic banking has become a reality and big conventional banks e.g. HSBC and Lloyds TSB sell Islamic banking products alongside their conventional products. The voice of criticism is no longer heard.

Healthcare is one of the fastest growing industry and consumers go to various extent to stay healthy, experimenting with various alternative methods, drugs and food supplements even though their effectiveness are still being debated. This is because hospital treatment alone does not give a complete answer to one’s health. Furthermore, western medical practice does not give answers to all types of diseases.

There is one aspect of Islamic medical treatment which considers metaphysics factors (e.g. Jinn and black magic) as the cause of some diseases which can cause physical bodily harm or psychological or paranormal changes in human behaviour. Just like Islamic banking concepts had faced stiff criticism from sceptics, this section of Islamic medical treatment will face strong criticism from opponents. This section of Islamic medical treatment takes into account metaphysical factors as the cause of some diseases, challenging the theory of modern medicine which denies the existence of metaphysics-being such as Jinn.

Critics will view the proponents of Islamic medical treatment as people who live in the past and those who have not kept up with progress of the 21st century. Their rejection is motivated by pre-conceived ideas, not by sound debate on the subject. In the past, proponents of Islamic medical treatment were handicapped simply because they cannot reach a large audience to convey their arguments. This has been caused primarily by their weaknesses in English and lack of medium to convey their argument. The popularity of internet technology and the presence of many English-speaking proponents will now allow the debate of Islamic medical treatment to be heard around the globe.

It took three decades for Islamic banking to establish itself as a viable alternative to conventional banking. It is not unreasonable to say that three decades from now, we will most likely see Islamic medical practice establishing itself as a viable alternative to modern medicine on certain diseases. Just like we now have a conventional and Islamic counter at leading banks, it is not absurd to visualise a “normal disease” counter and a “paranormal disease” counter at hospitals in the future.

A wide range of changes can happen in the future. Health insurance in the future may cover treatment using Islamic medical practice. With mobile internet gaining even higher bandwidth, Islamic medical practitioners will use mobile phone video-streaming technology for remote consultation and remote treatment. Mobile phone users will also start downloading Islamic medication verses in addition to their favourite ring-tones.

Many non-Muslims are now using Islamic banking and we can also expect many non-Muslims to resort to Islamic medical practice in the future. With intellectual debates, academic publications and R&D on Islamic medical treatment on the way, critics of Islamic medical treatment will soon be on the defensive. Just like the case of Islamic banking, these critics of Islamic medical practice will be silenced eventually.

Before the PC was invented, we only knew viruses as micro-organisms that cause harm to our body. When the term virus was first applied in the 1980's to refer to a harmful piece of software that replicates from PC to PC, many people were amused. One company even came out with an anti-virus software called "Vaccine" and that added to the amusement.

After about 2 decades later, computer viruses are now a real threat and we no longer treat them with amusement. Despite the introduction of new cyber laws to eradicate new threats in cyberspace, there is still no sign that cyber criminals are giving up. Our PCs may look healthy, but we never know if they are affected by viruses until we suspect something and start scanning using anti-virus software.

Apply the same situation with one of the oldest crime in human history i.e. sihir. Unlike new threats in cyberspace which gets new cyber laws to incriminate cyber criminals, sihir criminals are free to practice and spread their crimes due to the absence of sihir laws or "metaphysics-space" laws. There are even allegations that politicians resort to bomohs (for the casting of sihir spells on their opponents) instead of relying on the ballot box. The threat is real and we never know if any of the top politicians have been infected by sihir until we scan them using anti-sihir "software".

Our body may look healthy, just like our PC may look healthy, but we never know if we have been infected by virus ... oops sihir. Ustaz Trimizi will arrive in the UK sometime next week and will be around for about 1 month Insha'Allah. Those who suspect they have been infected by sihir or jinn, can contact Melayu UK for an appointment with Ustaz Trimizi. We have already received several requests and we would like to create a treatment schedule so as not to disrupt the main objective of Ustaz Trimizi's presence in the UK.

Melayu UK is very concerned with the reporting by News Of the World on 6th April 2008 which gives an impression that Sufiah Yusof, the Maths prodigy, is happy with her new job as an escort. Melayu UK rejects her confession as the true and honest story of herself. We are not disputing that Sufiah did not say what were reported. We are also not disputing the accuracy of reporting by News Of The World. What is disputed is the accuracy of the confession, which we believe was not sincere and may have been influenced by other circumstantial factors.

News of The World reported on 30th March 2008 that Sufiah lived in a “dingy back street flat”, “sad little flat”, use “cheap portable stereo”, “nervously stripping down to her red lace bra and knickers” and “works alone from her flat without any obvious physical security or protection”.

In just about a week later, the sad condition of Sufiah suddenly changed to a happy and glamorous Sufiah who said “happy doing what I do”, “My clients treat me like a princess”, “my escort work provides me with a fabulous life”, and “sees between five and ten men each week”.

Based on just £130 per session and 5 clients per week, Sufiah would have earned at least £10,400 for the 4-month period since she left her £16,000 per year job. She would have been able to clear her £3500 debts, afford to replace her cheap stereo and would probably be living in a more upmarket flat. At 10 clients per week and with many generous clients, she would have been living in a better condition.

We strongly believe that Sufiah is still crying for help, is not enjoying her escort work and is trying to find a way out of her misery. We would like to challenge News Of The World to contact Sufiah and convince her to undergo a holistic Islamic medical treatment by our team for a period of one month. The treatment can be done at an undisclosed location only known to the members of our team and News Of The World.

News Of The World had been able to persuade Sufiah to take off her clothes, and it is time for News Of the World to level the playing ground by convincing Sufiah to meet us. After the treatment period, we would like Sufiah to make a press conference to let the world know her story. We strongly believe that Sufiah will contradict her confession as reported by News Of The World.

Melayu UK is NOT an organisation exclusive to Malaysians in the UK. Our members comprise of Malaysians, Indonesians, Singaporeans and of course British citizens. It is therefore natural for us to be concerned about matters that affect our community.

It is understandable if some people or some organisations in Malaysia or even the Malaysian government want to abandon helping Sufiah. They may have other priorities to concentrate on or because public opinion is not in favour of helping a non-Malaysian.

Sufiah is part of the Melayu UK community and we will still carry on trying to help her. She is just one of the many people who has cried for help and we still believe is crying for help despite the glossy image portrayed by the News of The World. We have not got the chance to interview her. If we have this chance, the darker side of her story may appear. It is best not to make any conclusion based of reports by the News of The World alone.

Even if we believe that she is doing the evil wrong-doings on her own free will, we will still have to help her get out of the vice activities she has been involved in. Asking Melayu UK to abandon helping Sufiah is like asking us to approve prostitution or like asking the Malaysian government to do nothing to eradicate prostitution.

There are many people in Kuala Lumpur who chose to be prostitutes and are happy to be prostitutes. What would be our reaction? Leave them alone simply because they are happy with their lives? Of course we will want something to be done to help those people get out of prostitution.

The Malaysian government can of course do something using taxpayers money so solve problems is Malaysia. In contrast, Melayu UK tries to help members of our community with no financial resources. We accept that Malaysian taxpayers money should not be used to help Sufiah. However there is nothing to stop the Malaysian public, including politicians to dig their pockets for this good cause.

Helping someone in need should not be restricted to those living in one's country only. When Acheh was hit by tsunami, the whole world felt the pain and contributed without even questioning whether those people were Malaysians or British or whatever nationality. Similarly if there is an effort to help Sufiah, we should also feel the pain and contribute financially without putting nationality as a condition for helping her. If Sufiah can be saved by collective effort, we will be giving hope to those who are currently crying for help or those who will be crying for help in the future.

The Love Sufiah programme will still go on regardless of any negative media coverage on Sufiah. We hope members of the public will assist Melayu UK Love Sufiah programme by making financial contribution to enable us to make significant impact on our community.

A team of Islamic medical practitioners will be arriving in the UK sometime this month, Insha'Allah. They will be organising mobile clinics at locations throughout UK. Treatment will only be limited to those who have been affected by jinn and black magic. Question and answer sessions on sihir will be held prior to any treatment session. The discussion will include a short video footage on one of Ustaz Trimizi previous sessions, evidence of sihir in Islam, current efforts to promote Islamic medical practice to the west etc. Modern medicine do not have the answers to every disease especially those relating to "paranormal" factors.

Hypnotism, even though not recognised by modern medicine, is practised in the west. Islamic medical practice, if introduced to the west, can give a more convincing explanation of paranormal mysteries and Insha'Allah will be more popular than hypnotism or even psychiatric treatment . Furthermore the team uses a holistic approach to treatment, which also includes Islamic Support and Nurture programme for patients. The team has support from prominent Islamic medical practitioners in Malaysia, academicians and even medical doctors.

Unlike new threats like cyber crime which gets new legislation to convict cyber criminals, there is no provision to charge sihir criminals in court. The use of sihir has therefore increased over the years. Some sihir has even been re-branded and advertised in newspapers e.g. "sihir pengasih" is now being marketed as "ILMU pengasih" to hide or even glamorise sihir.

Treatments will be free but at the same time they will be collecting donations to finance the Love Sufiah programme. Those who wish to organise mobile clinics at their localities can contact me. Because of the uncertainty of the team's schedule, we can only confirm the date and location of any mobile clinics at a later date.

We would like people to stop referring to Sufiah Yusof as a prostitute or any terminology that will create hatred towards her. Sufiah is a person who is in great need of help. We must view her as a person in need of help, someone who did something wrong not because of her liking but because of something which is beyond her control.

Sufiah does not need abuse. She needs treatment. She is not a criminal. She is a patient. If we keep abusing her or hunt her like a criminal, we will never be able to treat her. We have to take a compassionate approach. We have to let her know that there are people out there who love her, people who are willing to help her get out of her misery.

We will be launching the "Love Sufiah" campaign so that she will contact people whom she thinks she can trust. The focus now is not on "we find Sufiah" but on "Sufiah can find us".

We must also remove any hatred toward the campaign to save Sufiah. Sufiah is a member of the Melayu UK community. In the past we have helped people in need with no publicity at all. Publicity is not a crime so let us not treat it as a crime. If we care about saving those in need of help, then we should support publicity not go against it. Sufiah is just one of those whom we are helping and we do not know how many more will need our help in the future. Publicity will make our work easier.

If we hate any effort to save Sufiah, then we should refrain from saying anything. If we love to save her, then it is time to open our cheque books or get our credit cards and start donating to this good cause. We are scared that if Sufiah decides to contact us, we will not be able to give the treatment she badly needed simply because we cannot even afford to purchase airline tickets for our team members.

Malaysian students in Dublin, Ireland grabbed the opportunity to improve their personal development by attending the Seminar Legasi Tun Abdul Razak on Sunday 17th February 2008. The one day seminar organised by Kelab UMNO Dublin in collaboration with Melayu UK Student Support Team (MUSST) aimed to encourage Malaysian student to participate in intellectual discourse as one of the means to enhance their leadership skills.

Led by Malays who were born and raised in the UK, MUSST is actively involved in organising leadership training programs for Malaysians students in UK and Ireland. The formation of MUSST has given Malaysian students an effective platform for their personal development.

Malaysian students wishing to get the maximum benefit during their stay in the UK should join MUSST. Information on MUSST can be obtained on their website www.musst.org.uk

Melayu UK Student Support Team (MUSST) successfully organised its Weekend @ Oxford Workshop from 2nd to 3rd February 2008. The 2-day event conducted by Sariah Barnes on enhancing personal and leadership skills were very well received by the participants. Even the Bicester Village Designer Outlet management were excited when they knew that the future leaders of Malaysia were in Bicester. To express their excitement, all participants were given VIP cards which entitle them to a 10% discount on purchases at the outlet.

With the success of the event, the enthusiasm of the particants and the interests shown by those who missed the event, MUSST plans to hold many more workshops in the future. Please visit MUSST website www.musst.org.uk regularly for the latest information on MUSST events.

On 5th January 2008, Melayu UK enters a new era by officially launching the Students Support Team.

Suhaib Shafii, President and Founder of Melayu UK Students Support Team (MUSST) said, “Melayu UK is a proactive organisation that takes its responsibility to Malaysia seriously. MUSST primarily aims to bridge the gap between the British community and the Malay students [from Malaysia] so that Malay students can benefit more from their stay in Britain. The British network is rich in transferable skills that Malay students can grasp, develop and bring back to Malaysia hence adding value towards their contribution to Malaysian development.”

MUSST is a platform tailored to support the personal growth of Malay students. It also acts as a hub to exchange information, advice and personal experiences amongst Malay students. [Ends]

Notes:

1. Melayu UK Students Support Team (MUSST) is a subsidiary of Persatuan Masyarakat Melayu UK (Melayu UK), a registered organisation with the Malaysian High Commission in London. 2. The Malaysian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom is the patron of Melayu UK. 3. Melayu UK Students Support Team can also be found at www.facebook.com 4. For further information please email musst @ melayu.org.uk or alternatively visit our website www.musst.org.uk